This invention relates to an apparatus for producing dried dough.
As is known in the art, a problem currently felt is that of reducing the preparation time of so-called "first courses", i.e. alimentary dough based meal courses.
In an attempt to obviate the foregoing problem, dried dough products have been marketed which are pre-cooked such as to reduce their preparation time for the home user as well as the overall cooking time of various dishes.
Such known types of pre-cooked dough food products are subjected, during their production process, to a pre-cooking treatment, whereby it later becomes sufficient, e.g. when preparing "lasagne" or "cannelloni" dishes, to cook a dish in an oven which has been preset to bring the dough to a fully cooked final condition.
However, the latter type of pre-cooked dough requires cooking times on the order of 30 to 40 minutes, and while making the preparation of the dish simpler, cannot afford any effective reduction in the dish preparation time.
Other types of currently available dried dough food products are treated with a pre-cooking procedure which is generally known as "instantaneization", i.e. a process whereby the dough is made suitable for instant use. In actual practice, they are caused to undergo almost complete cooking, such that at the moment they are to be used, such dough products only require a liquid treatment of a few minute duration to practically allow the dough to absorb the right amount of liquid, thereby the dough becomes ready for consumption.
Again in the field of "ready made" first courses, the preparation should be mentioned of a fully dressed course which is then subjected to deep freezing for subsequent sale to the consumers, it bein intended for de-freezing in an oven at the moment of its use.
This approach has proved disadvantageous in that, additionally to involving very high production costs as determined by the so-called "cold chain", it requires a comparatively long time for de-freezing and heating the product.
Therefore, the status of the art offers no apparatus for producing products which can enable the preparation of a finished first course within a short time, i.e. on the order of a few minutes.